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Are Britain's Railways Costing Too Much? Perspectives Based on TFP Comparisons with British Rail 1963-2002

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  • Andrew S. J. Smith

Abstract

Following the Hatfield accident in October 2000, the cost of running Britain's railways has increased very sharply, leading to considerable debate about whether current cost levels are reasonable. This paper seeks to inform this debate by assessing post-Hatfield cost and TFP levels against the historical precedents set by British Rail and the early experience of the newly privatised industry. The results show that industry cash costs rose by 47 per cent between 1999/2000, the last financial year before Hatfield, and 2001/2002 - but, surprisingly, with train operating costs accounting for 42 per cent of this growth. The results also show that the post-Hatfield cost spike is unprecedented when compared against historical benchmarks. Analysis of long-term data on quality and safety measures indicates that an excessive focus on rail safety may offer part of the explanation for the cost growth. © 2006 LSE and the University of Bath

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  • Andrew S. J. Smith, 2006. "Are Britain's Railways Costing Too Much? Perspectives Based on TFP Comparisons with British Rail 1963-2002," Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, University of Bath, vol. 40(1), pages 1-44, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:tpe:jtecpo:v:40:y:2006:i:1:p:1-44
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    Cited by:

    1. James Uguccioni, 2016. "Estimating Total Factor Productivity Growth: Canadian Freight Railways, 1986 to 2009," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 30, pages 77-97, Spring.
    2. Wetzel, Heike & Growitsch, Christian, 2006. "Economies of Scope in European Railways: An Efficiency Analysis," IWH Discussion Papers 5/2006, Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH).
    3. Smith, Andrew S.J. & Wheat, Phill E. & Nash, Chris A., 2010. "Exploring the effects of passenger rail franchising in Britain: Evidence from the first two rounds of franchising (1997-2008)," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 72-79.
    4. Fumitoshi Mizutani & Andrew Smith & Chris Nash & Shuji Uranishi, 2015. "Comparing the Costs of Vertical Separation, Integration, and Intermediate Organisational Structures in European and East Asian Railways," Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, University of Bath, vol. 49(3), pages 496-515, July.
    5. Luisa Affuso & Alvaro Angeriz & Michael Pollitt, 2009. "The Impact of Privatisation on the Efficiency of Train Operation in Britain," Working Papers 28, Queen Mary, University of London, School of Business and Management, Centre for Globalisation Research.

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